Netflix’s New Sci-Fi Looks Like The Perfect Terminator Replacement

Netflix is trying to become the go-to hub for TV and movie entertainment, and that mission includes being the go-to hub for every major genre of entertainment there is. Netflix has certainly put a lot of money behind big action films like The Gray Man, or star-studded comedies like Don’t Look Up, and too many rom-coms and dramedies to name here. But what about that niche lane for sci-fi-horror-action?

Netflix tried getting into the Terminator franchise with its 2024 anime series Terminator Zero, but that show couldn’t snag a big enough audience and has been canceled. But a new trailer has just revealed that Netflix does not need to get further ensnared with Terminator, because it’s already sitting on a promising new franchise that could rival it.

Netflix’s War Machine Is Terminator For the Modern Era

Play video

War Machine is the new film from Patrick Hughes, director of The Expendables 3 and The Hitman’s Bodyguard film series with Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson. The film stars Amazon’s Reacher leading man Alan Ritchson, and an ensemble that includes Dennis Quaid, Jai Courtney, Esai Morales, Keiynan Lonsdale, and others as recruits of a U.S. Army Rangers special unit, being put through a strenuous boot camp. However, training turns into an active mission when a giant killer robot (possibly alien) crashes near the squad’s location and begins wiping them out. Survival becomes the immediate concern, but because these noble warriors are Army Rangers, there’s a secondary mission that

The original Terminator movie by James Cameron is blessedly straightforward in its appeal: two protagonists trying to stay one step ahead of an unstoppable, killer robot. War Machine is taking that very same approach, and hopefully it will be just as thrilling. The Terminator also spawned an entire franchise universe – one that admittedly lost its original appeal after the second film. The issue was that Cameron’s original ‘race against the Doomsday Clock’ premise got replaced with convoluted time travel lore that seemed to get stuck in confusing loops of cause and effect.

Read Next

10 Most Rewatchable Sci-Fi Movie Franchises of All-Time

War Machine may have the advantage of being the first chapter in a larger alien invasion story to come. Whether or not Ritchson’s character survives, this killer alien robot tank is just one piece of weaponry. If (when) it goes down, there are most likely going to be protocols in place to simply send more resources to address resistance. Instant hype for War Machine 2.

As stated, Netflix is making a big push to be the dominant entertainment hub, and getting a franchise like War Machine off the ground could be a great way to make sure users are coming back to the platform regularly for major feature film releases, just like they go to the theater. As for Alan Ritchson? This looks like a perfect movie role to go along with his breakout role on Reacher.

War Machine will begin streaming on Netflix on March 6th. Come discuss your favorite action movies on the ComicBook Forum!